Ryō Shishido
Background Shishido Ryō is the overconfident player of Hyōtei Academy, a 3rd Year Middle Schooler who is predominantly a doubles player, who began the storyline with being utterly defeated by Kippei Tachibana. This forced him to recreate his tennis style which proved to be a massive improvement to his game which enabled to re-earn his regular place which he previously lost from losing to Tachibana. Appearance Shishido used to have long brown hair tied at the back. However, since he was kicked off the Hyotei regulars and had to work back up the ranks, he proved his devotion by cutting off most of his hair. Like Ryoma and Sanada, Shishido wears a cap while playing tennis. His cap colour is blue, and he wears it backwards. He has a round face with a pointy chin. He also has a band-aid above his left eye-brow. He has brown eyes like a majority of other characters; however, in the anime his eyes are sometimes also seen to be a dark purple. Personality Shishido hates to lose, and frequently claims that losing is lame. Shishido and Ōtori have an extremely close friendship. Its also known that Shishido was friends with Mukahi prior to attending Hyotei. He is also an extremely hard worker and everything he's gained is from pure determination. He is also willing to sacrafice things precious to him in order to obtain his goals, e.g. his long hair that he was so proud of. When Shishido was a first year, he was respectful to his upperclassman but disrespectful to Atobe. He refused to accept Atobe as the captain of the Hyotei team until he was defeated by him, 2 vs 1, 6-3. As he grew older, he mellowed out his rude behaviour towards Atobe and eventually grew to admire and support Atobe. History Two Years Prior To The Storyline Shishido enters Hyotei Middle School along with friend Mukahi Gakuto who he had known before Hyotei. He is present with Jiro Akutagawa who he also went to Hyotei Elementary with. As Atobe Keigo gives his speech during the school assembly in which he informs other freshman as well as the whole school that he is now the King of Hyotei much to Shishido's annoyance. Shishido is annoyed even more realizing Atobe is good at tennis and is joining the tennis club like he is. He then rushes to the club house along with most members to find out that Atobe has decided he is the King of the Tennis Club since he believes he is the strongest in the club. When Atobe is questioned on why he is taking over the club, he arrogantly states its because he is the strongest, therefore he must be the King of the club. Shishido loses his temper, however, Mukahi holds him back. Atobe then proves this by defeating all the regulars consecutively, then when asking who has a problem, Shishido and Mukahi immediately retaliate saying they would like to challenge Atobe, proving that Atobe was not the only player better than the regulars of that time. However, Atobe is still able to defeat Shishido and Mukahi at the same time despite it being much more of a closer match. At this time, Oshitari Yūshi who arrives to the club later in the day had seen their whole match and states that it was uncool. Causing Atobe to ask if he has a problem. Both Yushi and Atobe undergo a long game in which he and Atobe have a fairly close match. After witnessing this, Shishido then agrees that Atobe is the strongest in the club. It is shown in the OVA that Shishido receives a regular jersey along with Akutagawa, Oshitari, Atobe and Mukahi in their freshman year, since they were the strongest players in the club. Tokyo Prefecturals He is known as Hyōtei's "dash specialist" due to his speed and ability to return almost any ball. He is initially dropped from the regulars after being defeated by Kippei Tachibana within 15 minutes during the Tokyo Prefectural quarterfinals, but he soon cuts his precious long hair and with the help of teammate Ōtori Chōtarō went through intense training and makes a return to the team. He joins in doubles with Chōtarō, and they become very close. After hard training, he develops the "Rising Counter", which hits the ball directly after it bounces, which is strengthened by his dashing. His efforts finally paid off when he easily defeated then-regular Taki Haginosuke. With Atobe Keigo and Ōtori's support, Advisor Taro Sakaki bended the rule and Shishido regained his spot on the team. Regionals In the Kanto Tournament, Hyotei and Seigaku met in the first round. In Doubles 2, Shishido and Ōtori defeat Kaido and Inui 6-3 however Hyotei ultimately lose to Seigaku after a dramatic match which goes on to tie-break down to the reserve players.This causes the Hyotei players to be devastated however luckily, due to Tokyo being that years hosts for the National Tournament, Hyotei recieve a wild card since they were one of the teams in the city entered in the draw to be wild carded from the Tokyo region. Which meant they could enter the National Tournament as one of the 4 Tokyo representatives. During the final of the Regionals however, Shishido and the rest of the Hyotei regulars appeared to watch in the audience. Nationals Jirou, Shishido and Kabaji.jpg|Shishido lining up for the Hyotei VS Seigaku counter with teammates Akutagawa and Kabaji(far right) Shishido in action.jpg|Shishido in action during the nationals. Although Hyotei were knocked out in the 1st Round of the Kanto Regional Tournament by Seigaku which prevented them for heading to the Nationals, due to Tokyo being the host city for the tournament, it allowed Tokyo to give a place in the tournament to the city's next best team that failed to qualify, which turned out to be Hyotei won the 5th place consolation after defeating St.Rudolph. This meant Shishido could go to the nationals with Hyotei. Shishido plays in Doubles 1 in the Quarterfinals against the The Golden Pair Kikumaru Eiji and Shuichiro Oishi of arch rivals Seigaku. They win after a dramatically long encounter after pressuring the Golden Pair into activating Synchro however due to Synchro when first activated leaving the players in an unconscious state while playing, Kikumaru stopped Oishi from hitting an easily returnable ball to save his weak wrist as the two were completely harmonized in mind resulting in a 7-6 (9-7) tie-break win and this brings the scores to 2 wins and 2 losses. Prior To U-17 Camp ChoutaroShishido.png ShishidoKaidohRace.png|Whilst jogging, Shishido bumps into Kaidō jogging, the two of them eventually end up racing each other without reason. Shishido and the rest of the Hyotei senior regulars discuss amongst each other who should become the next Hyotei captain out of the 2nd Years shown in Pair Puri. The main players nominated being Ōtori or Hiyoshi with Hiyoshi being the favourite. Atobe Keigo asks the opinion of Shishido. Shishido begins by saying reasons why Ōtori may not be good enough. However, Ōtori who was listening close by hears Shishido and runs off feeling hurt. However, Shishido was yet to finish and went to add on that the reasons he stated were what he would have said at the start of the year and that currently, he believes Ōtori could handle the captain role. However, Ōtori did not hear Shishido finish and ended up being angry during practice after even being rude to Hiyoshi who had no idea what was going on. Shishido then goes to speak to him. However Ōtori doesnt want to talk with him and exclaims that he knows what Shishido thinks of him. The other Hyotei players are confused including Shishido. Shishido leaves practice and goes for a walk around town. While walking, he bumps into local school rival club member Kaoru Kaido of Seigaku. U-17 Camp After the Nationals, Shishido along with his Hyotei teammates Oshitari Yūshi, Hiyoshi Wakashi, Mukahi Gakuto, Ōtori Chōtarō, Akutagawa Jirō, Atobe Keigo and Kabaji Munehiro recieve invitations the Japan U-17 Training Camp along with several other middle schoolers. While there, he and Ōtori pair up when the announcer asks all middle schoolers to pair up together. However the announcer suddenly orders that all pairs must play a doubles tie-break against one another and the loser must get sent home. Ōtori ultimately manages to defeat Shishido 9-7 and advances past his next High School opponent and reaches the 6th Court while Shishido has to go and train in the Drunken Coach's Mountain and arrives back to the camp in the 2nd Court. Mountain Climbing While training in the mountains, Shishido undergoes the tasks that the Drunken Coach of the mountains orders. First, there is an exercise which involves all Middle Schoolers against High Schoolers at once. Shishido and the middle school losers engage in the Drunken Coach's tasks such as digging a hole and running a lap through the forest, all 25 middle schoolers against the High Schoolers that were unable to attain a ball. The most dangerous of all, an Eagle balloon chase, in which the Middle Schoolers had a balloon attached to them with a scent that eagles love, and they had to escape the eagles without having their balloons pop. Shishido, eventually becomes tired of the fleeing and instead stands in the open and bravely challenges the eagles much to everyone's surprise. Shishido is later welcomed back to the camp by Ōtori and the other Middle Schoolers as the losers return from the mountains and end up defeating 2nd Court members and the 27 middle schoolers are then renamed as the 2nd Court. Tennis Record Official Middle School Tournament Unofficial Matches * NOTE-1 In the OVA, he partnered up with Mukahi and played Atobe 2-vs-1 and lost 3-6, while according to Pair Puri, it only states that he was “decisively defeated” by Atobe. Playing Style and Technique Shishido is a counterpuncher whose playstyle is defined by his deep-hitting Rising Shot, and later, nu his “dash specialist” title. He is one of the 3 Regulars chosen by Hyotei to be sent out to play at the Prefecturals, hinting that he was one of the more reliable or consistent among the Regulars. He’s been noted to have naturally good footwork and according to the OVAs, he was on the Regulars since his first year. At singles, however, he seems to be inferior to Oshitari and Atobe, with Atobe outright telling him that he was no good at singles but had potential in doubles. Before losing to Tachibana, he was arrogant, believing that he could defeat Tachibana in 20 minutes despite never seeing him play. After losing to Tachibana, he reshaped his playstyle from the ground up through intense training and took his footwork and Rising Shot to new heights, defining and shaping his counterpuncher style of returning any shots even further. Also, he transitioned from a singles player to a doubles player, which according to volume 40.5, was a field he was unfamiliar with, and yet he was able to develop a countermeasure to the Australian Formation while having only played Doubles for less than 2 months. The two partners have a strong bond of trust between them, allowing the Shishido/Otori pair to play an amazing Doubles game that is praised by many, including the Golden Pair. Ryuzaki Sumino, Seigaku’s coach, has stated that besides the Golden Pair, there was no other formation in Seigaku that could defeat Shishido and Otori. His teamwork with Otori was strong enough to defeat the Oshitari/Mukahi, Kaido/Inui, and Golden Pair. According to Atobe, both Otori and Shishido are never careless, a trait Shishido gained after losing against Tachibana. Otori and Shishido are one of the few consistently paired Doubles pair to have not lost a Doubles match in the series. Rising Shot A half-volley where the returner hits the ball they are returning just as it is bouncing up before the ball reaches its highest point, in order to give the opponent less time to react due to the ball being returned faster than normal. Shishido’s skill with the Rising Shot lets him hit it deep towards the baseline, keeping most opponents trapped and unable to approach the net. His skill with this shot was noted by fellow Rising Shot specialist Fuji Yuta. Dash In a Rising Shot, the first step to catch the ball while it’s on-the-rise is crucial and must be fast. To perfect his positioning, Shishido practiced against Otori’s 200 km Scud Serve several times without a racquet to improve his reaction time and decrease his response time while he was kicked off of the Hyotei Regulars. As a result of his training, he can now dash '''towards the ball very quickly to position himself to any shot he’s prepared against, regardless of distance. To an untrained eye, it almost seems like Shishido teleported towards the ball. Shishido is able to combine this technique and his '''Rising Shot to use the Rising Counter, having enough time to position himself while the ball is rising. Rising Counter Combining his insane footwork and Dash '''with his '''Rising Shot, Shishido is able to return any of the opponent’s shots from anywhere, anytime as a Rising Shot. This technique defines his playstyle as a counterpuncher who can return any shots that he’s prepared for deep towards the opponent's baseline. Inducement Formation Also known as the Australian Formation Seal, Shishido stands in front of Otori during his service return when the opponent’s serving with the Australian Formation. This formation uses the Shishido/Otori pair’s unorthodox movements to reduce the opponent’s options and limits the locations where an opponent returns the ball, destroying the surprise factor of the Australian Formation. Anime Only Pile Mirage He and his partner, Chōtaro, stand in a straight line as if to be one person then make the same movements to confuse the opponent. U-17 Camp Stats *Speed: 4 *Technique: 3 *Mental: 4 *Stamina: 3 *Power: 3 Personal Information *Hobby: Billiards *Father's Occupation: Teacher (primary school) *Spends Allowance On: Buys CDs and magazines *Favorite Motto: "Never Give Up" *Best Subjects: Geography, History *Worst Subjects: Geometry, Conversational English *Committee: Off-Campus Activities Committee Member *Most frequently visited place in school: School Store, School Infirmary *Favorite Color: Red, Purple *Favorite Food: Cheese Sandwich, Mint Gum *Favorite Movie: "Star Wars" series *Favorite Book: Music magazines *Favorite Music: Western music (mainly rock) *Favorite Type: A sassy, boyish girl; Someone who seems cocky and is boyish *Favorite Date Spot: Amusement park *Currently Most Wanted Item: Rare jeans *Daily Routine: Walks his dog, stands and reads at the convenience store *Something He's Bad With: Homeroom teacher Kobayashi, embarrassing poems *Special Skills Outside of Tennis: **Poker **Bowling (highest score is 272) *Catch Phrase: Gekidasa daze, literally means super lame Daily School Life *05:00 - Rises from bed, does jogging while walking his pet dog *05:45 - After jumping rope 1000 times, light shower *06:30 - Goes to school has a CalorieMate (cheese flavored) after coaching the underclassmen during morning drills *09:00 - First Period: Mathematics 1: Algebra (dozes off) *10:00 - Second Period: Social Studeis 2: History (ups the strength of his grip with a power ball) *10:50 - Recess: Plays cards with his classmates *11:00 - Third Period: Personal Computer *12:00 - Fourth Period: Technology 3: Medical Care *12:50 - Lunch break: After eating the cheese sandwich he bought, hits balls against the wall *13:20 - Fifth Period: Japanese 1 (is called on by homeroom teacher Kobayashi to recite a poem) *14:20 - Sixth Period: Physical Education: Reugby *15:20 - Drags Jirou, who's dozing, to attend the Off-Campus Activities Committe's meeting *16:00 - Club Activities: Looks over Hiyoshi's form *18:30 - Treats Ōtori to ice cream at a convenience store, stands and reads magazines *19:00 - Free training at a street tennis place in the neighborhood *20:30 - Returns home, shower, dinner *21:00 - Laundry (Nine T-shirts and a towel), enjoys TV *22:00 - During his roadwork (jogging), meets with Ōtori for secret special training *0:00 - Returns home, bathes, goes to bed Note from Oshitari Yūshi: Aren't you doing something interesting...let me join in. If you win against me, I'll treat you to a cheese sandwich. Note from Hiyoshi: Hn, he doens't know that he'll be beaten by me too before long. He even gets water for me...what a meddlesome person. Tennis Bag Content *'Plasters' WIth the harsh training, he gets cuts and scrapes. Although he brings this around with him, there are times when he doesn't bother. *'Towel' He trains a lot and so he has a large one to wipe sweat with. He has a spare one in the locker. *'Power ball' A training equipment that exercises the fingers and wrist using centrifugal forces. He uses it when moving around or in class, whenever he gets a moment. *'Jumping rope' He uses it when there are no free courts during club practice. Like running, it's a a good thing because it doesn't use the mind. *'Mint gum' He likes mint flavours but isn't too fixed on it. He chews on gum when he wants to concentrate or when he wants to clear his mind. *'Photos of pet dog' Shishido's family dog. He brought the photos to school because dog-loving classmates say they want to see it. Character Trivia *Aside from tennis, Shishido has fun walking his dog. *He would like to go overseas and try eating all the local foods, one after another. *Shishido does his own laundry but he doesn't like it. His mother makes him do it. Trivia *Shishido has appeared in all of the Shonen Jump character popularity polls since his introduction into the story. In the second poll, he came in 20th place. In both the third and fourth polls, he came in 12th place. *Shishido was Kusuda Toshiyuki's very first voice acting role. Quotes *''“That’s super lame!”'' (“Gekidaze dana!”) *(Referring to Mizuki’s defeat against Fuji) “How pitiful, that guy.” (“Buzamada ne, aitsu.”) *''“I’ll finish this in 20 minutes.”'' (“Ore ga nijyupun de owarasete yaru ze.”) *(Using his Rising Shot against Tachibana) “You won’t be able to come to the net!” (“Net ni wa dasase ne yo!”) *''“Well, what’ll you do?”'' (“Saa, douyo?”) *''"Certainly, it's fast. But in these past 3 weeks, I have been facing Chotaro’s 200 km/hr serve every day. To me, this feels slow!"'' **("Tashikani, hayai. Daga ore wa kono sanshukan, Chotaro no nihyaku kilo chikai serve wo mainichi kurate kitanda. Tomatte mieru ze!") *''"I’ll depend on you, Chotaro."'' ("Tanomu ze, Chotaro.") *''"It’s enough. As long as he can return it, I can start my attack!"'' ("Jubun da. Kaishite kuresai suru wa, ore ga seme ni kaite yaru ze!") *''"Dora!"'' *''"The side is completely open!"'' ("Side garaaki daze!") *''“Hey! You better not be giving up now! The one to win is Hyotei, right! Get your spirits up and start cheering, idiots!”'' **(“Hora! Urotai tenjan nezo, kora! Katsu no wa Hyotei daro ga! Kiai irete ouen shiro, aho!”) *''“But from this point on, I will create and play my own style of tennis!”'' **(“Daga kore kara ore wa ore nari no tennis wo tsukuri yagette yaru!”) Gallery Shishido with long hair.jpg Shishido praying in the chuch for his match against Seigaku the next day in the Nationals Quarterfinals.jpg Category:Characters Category:Tennis Player Category:Hyotei Tennis Club Member Category:Middle Schooler Category:3rd Year Middle School Category:U-17 Camp Category:Counterpuncher Category:Right-Handed Category:Tokyo Players Category:Kanto Players Category:Doubles Specialists Category:Revolutionary Brigade Category:September Births Category:B Blood Types Category:Libra